Eddie Alvarez vs. Gilbert Melendez
The first round began. Alvarez lands a right to the body then head. Alvarez lands a left. 4:00. Melendez lands a good jab. Melendez hurts him bad with a left and a huge counter right elbow, jabs in, lands a big right. Stalking. Alvarez thinks about trying a single, doesn't. Feints it I guess? Melendez lands a jab. Rogan mentions the first Chandler fight. Melendez lands another jab. Alvarez lands a hard leg kick, eats a jab. 3:00. "Don't wait for his shot!" Henri Hooft says. Alvarez lands a leg kick. "Got a cut due to a punch," Big John tells the judges. Melendez lands a counter right. Melendez lands a long stiff jab. Alvarez lands a jab. "Don't react to him." 2:00. "In and out!" Alvarez indeed looking gunshy. Melendez lands a clipping left elbow and a hard right. "Set it up!" 1:00. Melendez wings a big right uppercut. Stalking menacingly. Rogan thinks Alvarez is still hurt. Melendez lands a beautiful jab, eats a leg kick, lands another jab. 35. Alvarez tries a high kick, lands it to the ribs. Fakes a kick, 'showing him the hips.' 15. R1 ends, 10-9 Melendez and they touch gloves. Alvarez's left eye is swollen shut practically. They blame Alvarez blowing his nose at the end of the round for it, 'terrible thing to do for a fighter if he has a broken nose.' Rogan thinks he has one. In the replay it's a right elbow, not a huge right hand that Melendez throws. Gonna go back and edit it. And the left elbow they showed too. R2 began. Alvarez lands a beautiful crisp right. He lands another to the body. Alvarez's eye looks awful. He definitely can't see out of it. 4:00. Melendez lands a right hand on the end of it. Alvarez lands a left. And another. Alvarez works a double. Melendez thinking stadning guillotine, lets it go. "Make him work." Clinch. Alvarez knees the groin, time called. Rogan thinks Eddie's nose is broken. Melendez takes a knee. He's back up. They show the replay of Eddie blowing his nose, then the instant swelling. They continue with 3:00. Melendez lands a stiff jab. Alvarez lands a hard leg kick. Melendez shoots a double, knees the body after it's stuffed. 2:00. Melendez lands a jab. Alvarez lands a leg kick, eats a counter left. Melendez lands a right. Alvarez works a single, gets the standing back. Works a double, Melendez defending. Melendez landing lazy right hammerfists to the back. Stuffs. 1:00. Alvarez works a double, gets it. Butterfly guard. Passing. Side control. Melendez turtles up. Standing. Does, clinch. 30. "Finish strong, eh?" Alvarez working a double. 10. Boos. Alvarez breaks with a beautiful spinning elbow, Melendez wobbles, R2 ends, crowd boos, 10-9 Alvarez actually IMO. Doctor checks Alvarez. "For you five rounds is nothing. Take this round from him." R3 began and they touch gloves respectfully. Eddie says "I love you baby," lmao. Works a double early, switches to a single, stuffs. Melendez landing short rights and lefts inside, rights and left hammerfists. Stuffs a trip. Alvarez gets a double. Melendez thinking about hitting a switch. Melendez standing. Does to the clinch. Melendez breathing hard. Alvarez working a double. 4:00. Melendez stuffs it. Boos. Melendez lands a right uppercut inside, they break, oh it was a low shot to Melendez, he stuffs a single. Melendez eats a right, lands a counter left. Melendez lands another left. "He's tired Eddie!" "It's your round Eddie!" Alvarez misses a left by a mile, shows how bad that eye is. 3:00. Melendez breathing hard, lands a clipping left. Moving forward now. "You don't listen!" Hooft yells. Boos. Alvarez lands a leg kick, eats a jab and a few short rights. Alvarez gets a single, turtles him up. Melendez stands to the clinch. He stuffs a single. 2:00. Alvarez knees the leg twice. Works a double. Melendez defending. Alvarez switches to a single. Stuffed. Back to a double. Alvarez gets it. Melendez trying to hit a switch. Melendez stands to the clinch defending a double, thinking guillotine, they break. Melendez breathing hard. Alvarez swelling under the right eye now badly. Melendez looks exhausted. Melendez lands a jab. Alvarez lands a leg kick. 1:00. Melendez moving forward. Alvarez lands a body kick. Tries a high kick, eats a hard counter left. 35. "Altitude definitively is a factor in this fight." Alvarez lands a beautiful spinning elbow and eats a counter left. 15. Alvarez thought about the spin that time. Melendez cut above his right eye. Alvarez lands a right, tries a big right uppercut, R3 ends, 10-9 Alvarez, they shake hands. Alvarez shakes Melendez's hand and bows to him, Melendez does the same, they exchange words and hug. 29-28 split for... Alvarez. Right decision! Alvarez said he would have liked to take back blowing his nose. He said the grappling in the last two rounds was a big factor. "I could feel he wasn't strong there. It's a big part of MMA. I found that chink in his armor late in the first round and I had to go after it because of my eye."